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Lamborghini say no to turbos in supercars, for now

Lamborghini is preparing to launch what will not only be its first crossover (discounting the LM002 that was a proper truck), but also looks to be its first turbocharged model as well. But will the upcoming new Urus open the door for more artificially boosted Lambos in the future? That was the question on our minds when Autoblog caught up with Stephan Winkelmann at the opening of the new Trigeneration Plant in Sant'Agata Bolognese. "Naturally aspirated engines are still the best engines which are on the market for super sports cars, in terms of acceleration, in terms of sound," said Lamborghini's chief executive during a roundtable discussion at the factory. "And unless there is [something] better, we are going to keep them." "Naturally aspirated engines are still the best. Unless there is something better, we are going to keep them." "We are constantly looking for alternatives. We are constantly seeing what we can do to make them better," said Winkelmann. "And there will maybe a day when we are introducing turbos, when the turbos are equalizing or being better than naturally aspirated engines." That moment just hasn't come yet, in Lamborghini's estimation. This in sharp contrast to rivals like Ferrari and McLaren (to say nothing of its sister company Porsche) which are wholeheartedly embracing turbocharged engines, as well as hybrid propulsion. Any engine, turbocharged or otherwise, used to propel the Urus would not be so easily slotted into one of its mid-engined supercars, either. "Usually an SUV engine has a different stroke, so usually those engines have to be adapted if you want" to use them in mid-engined supercars, said Winkelmann. "Then they're at the front so you have to turn them, and if this is going to make sense, I don't know. At this time there are no plans to do that, but in general, these engines are not suitable" for models like the Huracan or Aventador. "There would be a day when we think that turbo can be better than naturally aspirated. And that day, we will step into it."

London police joyride in Lamborghini Huracan

A pair of Metropolitan London police officers are in hot water after they questionably impounded a Lamborghini Huracan earlier this summer. Oh, and they took it for a joyride. The stop, pictured above, occurred on June 2. The Huracan belongs to a rental car company was pulled over for having no insurance near Heathrow Airport. In Britain, police use a national database to run license plates to see if a car is insured. London-based City Supercars had recently updated the insurance on the $260,000-Lambo. However, there was a lag before the information was uploaded to the database. When manager Erwyn Mackee tried to explain the situation on the phone, the police weren't interested. "The officer was just being unreasonable and out of hand on the phone to me, and I was just trying to explain the facts calmly. He was just off his head, completely bonkers - it was very frustrating," Mackee told the Telegraph. So the Lambo was seized. But police decided to have a little fun with the car before sending it to an impound lot. Mackee checked the traffic-tracking software in the Huracan and found that officers were having a blast with their new prize. At one point, they hit 63 miles per hour in a 30-mph zone. Mackee called Met police out on Twitter. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Mackee, who is also a lawyer, told the Telegraph that the problem has been resolved amicably. Scotland Yard was embarrassed by the incident and punished the officers involved. One officer received three points on his license while the other was subject to management action. Related Video:

Lamborghini agrees to produce Urus in Italy

The Lamborghini Urus is apparently on the way, and it looks like it will be built in Italy. The news comes from Bloomberg, which claims Lambo CEO Stephan Winkelmann and Audi CEO Rupert Stadler will be joined by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi on Wednesday to announce a series of tax breaks to bring SUV production to Italy. The report cites multiple "people familiar with the matter." The details of the deal include up to 500 new jobs in exchange for $87 million in tax breaks along with "other benefits," according to Bloomberg. Just over a year ago, it was looking like Urus production was headed for Slovakia, where it'd be built alongside its MLB platform-mates, the Audi Q7, Volkswagen Touareg, and Porsche Cayenne. News of Italy's bid surfaced this spring. We'll be sure to keep an eye out for any official news as it becomes available. Related Video: